News of a Canvasback present at Abberton Reservoir yesterday was reported just too late, even being just over an hour away from the site, we wouldn't have arrived before dusk.
This morning we arrived at first light and began checking through the first raft of Pochard for any sign of the Canvasback. No sign of the target among those. A scan of the main reservoir from Layer-de-la-Haye causeway also failed to locate any Pochard so we decided to head to Wigborough Bay and scan that area. Again no Pochard was present. The next stop was Billet's Farm. We walked to the viewing screen in the company of four other like-minded birders. We found a large raft of Pochard close to the shore, but scanning them was made difficult by the tall vegetation between us and the water's edge. The whole raft would drift right and then back left, giving us a narrow field of view as they moved past small gaps in the vegetation. Suddenly there it was towards the back of the flock. The news was put out and very soon the viewing screen and the whole of the footpath were converged on by birders. Picking it out among the large raft of Common Pochard proved challenging at first but after several decent scope views the main features like the longer neck, sloping darkish/blackish bill, and the seemingly paler back and flanks become more evident.
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| Visitor centre viewed from Layer-de-la-Haye causeway |
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| Body of water between Layer-de-la-Haye and Layer Breton Causeways |
There haven't been any UK records of this species for over twenty years, but previous records of Canvasback do seem to show a liking for the large body of water at Abberton, with accepted records from 1997, 1999, and 2000.
I'm now hoping this individual will join them on that list and prove to be a county, year, and life addition. 🤞.
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